Le Destin fabuleux de Désirée Clary
1942 History / Drama
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Credits
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Summary
On the eve of the French Revolution, Napoléon Bonaparte makes the acquaintance
of a merchant’s daughter, Désirée Clary, in Marseilles. They fall
in love and agree to get engaged, but on his return to Paris, Napoléon decides
to marry instead Joséphine de Beauharnais. For her part, Désirée
also chooses to marry another, Bernadotte, who is destined to become King of Sweden.
In 1815, Napoléon and Désirée are reunited and discover their love
for one another is still very much alive...
Review
Le Destin fabuleux de Désirée Clary typefies the kind of lavish historical
drama with which Sacha Guitry is perhaps most associated. Although less inspired
than his subsequent historical films, such as Napoléon
(1955) and Si
Versailles m'était conté (1954), it is a solid piece of cinema,
well-written and well-acted, telling a poignant tale of unrequited love. The film
was made at the time of the Nazi Occupation of France and Guitry had some difficulties
getting approval for the film from the German censors. Indeed, it was only through
the intervention of the Swedish royal family that Guitry was able to gain the permission
he needed to make the film.
© James Travers 2003 Write a review for this film... |
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